MANSFIELD, Ohio – The College of Wooster women's golf team's early-Sunday charge pulled the Fighting Scots ahead of Allegheny College, then the Black and Gold held off the Gators down the stretch to secure the program's first third-place North Coast Athletic Conference finish in over a decade. Wooster's 1,098 at the 54-hole NCAC Championships ranked two strokes ahead of Allegheny's 1,100, and the Scots' third-place finish is tied for the highest in program history. Additionally, Wooster matched its program record with three Scots – sophomore Melissa Burtscher, first-year Ally Siewert, and senior Kayla Audette – earning all-conference honors.
"As a coach, I am so proud of this team as we got better each day," shared head coach Lisa Campanell Komara. "This team has done a tremendous job of making a rally charge to come from behind. It was a great day for the seniors to carry the team and keep us motivated."
Wooster entered Sunday 11 strokes back of Allegheny, and the Scots made that total up, and then some, by the turn. Wooster's four counting scorers played the back-nine at the par-73, 5,834-yard Westbrook Country Club at 24-over-par. Allegheny, which also started the round on the 10th hole, saw its four scorers go 39-over-par on the opening nine holes, giving Wooster a four-stroke lead. Wooster went 35-over-par on the front-nine, while Allegheny checked in at 33-over-par.
Siewert, an honorable mention All-NCAC performer with the 13th-place score of 276, was at the forefront of the surge for the second time this weekend. The biology major played Sunday's back-nine at 3-over-par, getting to that number with a birdie on the par-5, 400-yard 18th hole. Siewert, who played the par-5 holes at 1-under-par on Sunday, had a four-hole stretch of pars spanning holes 12-15, and had five pars in total on the back-nine.
Audette, the 14th-place finisher at 277, moved up six spots on the leaderboard over the final 18 holes, and in doing so, secured an honorable mention all-conference spot. Audette capped her collegiate career with an 84, Wooster's low round of the weekend. The neuroscience major's phenomenal back-nine featured five pars and no score worse than bogey. Of note, Audette and Siewert were a combined 11 strokes better than their Allegheny counterparts on Sunday's back-nine.
Burtscher debuted on the all-conference team with the seventh-place score of 265, which was good for second-team honors. The sophomore, who logged the second-highest NCAC finish in program history, chipped in with Sunday's climb to third-place with key pars on the par-4, 332-yard 13th hole and the par-4, 316-yard 15th hole. Then on the front-nine, Wooster's lineup anchor led the way with a 6-over-par 42. Back-to-back pars on holes three and four, then again on six and seven, helped secure the two-stroke victory over Allegheny. Burtscher came in at 89 on Sunday.
Senior Meghan Wright capped her collegiate career with a 90, and she took 20th with a three-day total of 284. Wright's steady play on the back-nine aided Wooster's cause, with the senior scoring pars on holes 11, 14, and 16, and she had five bogeys as part of a 7-over-par split.
Junior Riley Thorr rounded out Wooster's lineup. Thorr's three-day total of 301 ranked 23rd in the field. Thorr's final round of the year was headlined by a par on hole 14.
Nationally-ranked Denison University captured the NCAC title with a 978. DePauw University was the runner-up at 1,057. The Big Red's Sophia Alexander was the medalist with a 238.
Wooster's last third-place NCAC finish came in the program's debut season in 2011. The Scots last had three all-conference performers in 2017.